ARTICLE 21: PENSION PLAN
21.1 General. The Pension benefits are set forth in the National Hockey League Players' Pension Plan, Amended and Restated effective August 26, 1999, and as subsequently amended, and the National Hockey League Pension Plan for Players of United States Member Clubs, effective July 1, 2001, and as subsequently amended. The National Hockey League Players' Pension Plan and the National Hockey League Pension Plan for Players of United States Member Clubs (collectively the "Pension Plans"), shall be amended to the extent necessary so as to provide the benefits set forth in this Article 21. The NHL agrees that at all times at least one-half of the trustees comprising each of the two boards of trustees that act as the administrators of the National Hockey League Players' Pension Plan and the National Hockey League Pension Plan for Players of United States Member Clubs shall be appointed by the NHLPA from among its active members or their designated representatives. The NHL will appoint the remaining trustees. The NHLPA shall have the authority to designate the legal counsel, plan administrator, recordkeeper and other consultants retained with respect to the Pension Plans as outlined in Section 50.3(a)(iii).
21.2 Eligibility. A Player shall automatically become a participant of the applicable Pension Plan as of the date of his first NHL Regular Season Game played. For goalies, participation in the Plan will commence from the first NHL Regular Season Game the Player dresses for, either as a starter or as a back-up.
21.3 Basic Plan Benefits.
(a) Beginning for the 2005/06 playing season, and for each season thereafter during the term of this Agreement, each NHL Player shall have allocated and credited to an account established in his name, for his sole benefit, the following:
(i) for Players who have received credit for less than one-hundred and sixty (160) games, an amount equal to the maximum permissible under Canadian law.
(ii) for Players who have received credit for one-hundred and sixty (160) or more games, an amount equal to the maximum permissible under U.S. law.
(iii) Contributions to the National Hockey League Pension Plan for Players of United States Member Clubs for Players covered under (i) above shall be made in US dollars based on a conversion rate equal to the average currency exchange rate during the season. Contributions to the National Hockey League Players’ Pension Plan for Players covered under (ii) above shall be made in CDN dollars based on a conversion rate equal to the average currency exchange rate during the season.
A Player who plays eighty-two (82) games in any playing season (with games for which a Player is dressed and available to play, games missed due to a Trade or Waiver claim, and games not played because of illness or injury or because the Player has been temporarily Loaned to a club in the Minors solely for conditioning purposes following an injury or illness, in each case counting as games credited for this purpose) shall be entitled to a full credited year of service and full allocation of contributions for the applicable playing season. A Player playing less than eighty-two (82) games in any playing season (with games for which a Player is dressed and available to play, games missed due to a Trade or Waiver claim, and games not played because of illness or injury or because the Player has been temporarily Loaned to a club in the Minors solely for conditioning purposes following an injury or illness, in each case counting as games credited for this purpose) shall have credited to his account a proportionately reduced amount for the applicable playing season determined by the ratio that the number of games credited bears to eighty-two (82) for each applicable playing season. Subject to Sections 21.3(b) and 21.5, the Clubs will make the contributions and allocations called for above.
Any Player who received payment of salary from his NHL Club during the 2004/05 League Year as a result of being injured prior to the expiration of the prior CBA, shall have allocated and credited to an account established in his name, for his sole benefit, $10,000 CDN for Players who have received credit for less than four hundred (400) games played and $15,250 CDN for Players who have received credit for four hundred (400) games played or more, subject to the manner in which allocations are generally made and apportioned pursuant to the above paragraph, based on the number of games the Player would have missed in the 2004-05 season due to his injury.
(b) The NHLPA shall be obligated to contribute one-fourth of the above-specified amounts from the NHLPA's share of the proceeds from international hockey, to the extent that the NHLPA's proceeds are sufficient to satisfy this obligation. In the event that the principal amount of the proceeds, not including any interest thereon, is insufficient in any year to meet this obligation, any deficiency shall be paid by the Clubs, provided that such deficiency shall be repaid to the Clubs out of future proceeds during the term of this Agreement. To the extent that any deficiency remains unpaid on the date of termination of this Agreement, it shall be canceled and the NHLPA shall have no obligation to repay or to provide for the repayment of any such remaining deficiency.
(c) Players shall be responsible for investing the balance of their accounts within the funds offered under the Plan(s). Such investment fund options under the Plans will be determined by the Plan Trustees. Investment results shall be credited to each Player's account after provision for reasonable Plan expenses.
(d) Additional terms and provisions applicable to the contributions and benefits described in this Section 21.3 shall be set forth in the Pension Plan.
(e) To the extent that the specified amounts for pension contributions to the Plan on behalf of a Player(s) in accordance with this Article 21 exceeds the amount permitted to be contributed in respect of an individual to a retirement plan in any year under applicable law, the amount of such excess shall be payable as directed by the NHLPA for the benefit of such Player(s) no later than July 31st immediately following the season in which such excess applies.
21.4 Senior Player Benefits.
Effective with the 2005/06 season, contributions to the Senior Player Plan shall be eliminated as a result of the increased Basic Plan contributions.
21.5 Disabled Players.
A Player under an SPC who is permanently disabled and unable to perform his duties as a hockey Player by reason of an injury sustained during the course of his employment as a hockey Player, including travel with his team or on business requested by his Club, and as a result is compelled to retire prematurely from the League and who is entitled to benefits that had vested under the Pension Plan or plans described in this Article 21 hereof shall be entitled to have additional contributions made on his behalf in accordance with Section 21.3 until such contributions, together with contributions previously made on his behalf, would represent contributions for five (5) playing seasons in the aggregate. The funds to provide such additional contributions shall be paid from the National Hockey League Players Emergency Assistance Fund. Any disagreement as to disability or inability to perform shall be determined conclusively by doctors of the Club and of the Player, and, in the event said doctors are unable to agree, by an independent doctor selected by said doctors.
21.6 Benefits Under Prior CBAs or Pension Plans.
The Pension Plan shall continue to provide for each Player entitled to benefits through completion of the 2003/04 playing season all of the benefits set forth in Article 21 of the Collective Bargaining Agreement dated January 13, 1995, as amended June 26, 1997.
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